A Few Years too Late
by Novalia1001
Summary: When Manny ticks Frida off, she goes on a seething rampage and has no choice but to repent. Rate T for lip lock.


**A Few Years too Late**

Minutes to midnight, Death City was in average turmoil. With super powered heroics taking place and countless villainous acts radiating around the oddly enough silent sleeping volcano, eyes would stray from a seething adolescent: heavy platform black boots hitting the cracked cement in sequenced steps, a short pleated red skirt flashing above her knees and revealing long slim legs, a costly headset drilling rebellious rock into her very subconscious, that drumming sensation having no effect on her rage that boiled endlessly.

Turning a corner blindly, she let out an irritated growl, the scene recapping in her mind. Only one person could affect her emotions to this limit, to the realm of exasperation inferno.

Manuel Pablo Gutierrez O'Brien Equihua Rivera, namely. Now eighteen, she had no right to be investigating his life or anything of the sort, and she would have felt crushing guilt if she had used her position as the daughter of the chief of police to pry information on her best friend- but what had truly irritated her was that she didn't have to.

"_Frida, will you just-!"_

"_Manny, that's Zoe Aves! Do you not know who that is? The bird brain! The Aves! Do you know her name?"_

_Manny frowned, examining her expectant expression to see if it was a trick question. "Zoe Aves?" he guessed._

"_Yes! Aves, my arch nemesis since before time!"_

"_You weren't born before time," Manny retorted under his breath._

"_My point exactly!" she declared, her hands making strangling gestures before the Hispanic's wide brown eyes. "And you're there… lip locking with… it's like you're on her side now!"_

_He almost glared at her, and his intense gaze silenced her enough for him to hiss between his teeth:_

"_I'm not on anybody's side, Frida, not even yours," he said it poisonously, nearly threatening."If having to choose, I'm on my own side! Whether I date Zoe Aves or not shouldn't be any of your concern, the hell: so what? She's pretty hot, smart and not to mention is super powered, might as well be useful in some crimes around her other than the shallow pranks you pull me into."_

'Sticks and stones may break your bones, but words will never hurt you'.

Depends on who's saying the damned words.

Suarez hadn't the courage to face him after running away, on the brim of tears. She was too angry to face her sisters, to upset to confess to her parents, too pissed off to face the spicy cesspool she called home.

In the depths of her misery, she hardly noticed that she was being followed until she was cornered against a wall by three older, handsome but rebellious looking young men.

"Aw, who made the little pop princess cry?" one of them teased. Face flustered out of a new hatred, she brushed the remaining salts tears away and glared at the youthful criminals.

"I don't do pop: it's rock. Get it right, or don't get it at all." She was inclined to top it off with an insult, but her energy level wouldn't agree with her. The chuckles around her swirled a self- awareness and fear in the depths of her abdomen.

"Well, either way, it's not nice to see a princess cry and not do anything about it,"

"Want some comforting, little girl?"

She felt a cold clammy hand on her leg. Shoving and slapping hands away, adrenaline flared.

"Back off, already! Get lost!" she screeched, trying to squeeze through the enclosing bodies. Chuckles went to grim energetic laughing as they closed in even further. "Ugh! Get your slimy hands off me!"

"Didn't you hear the lady?" a commanding voice echoed from the frost bitten air. In swift unseen movements the three men were shoved away with bruises to their face and chest, crouching in pain or sprawled across the concrete ground.

Frida, dumbstruck, felt irritable relief when the recognized green eyes glaring at the future rapists and him caging her in consoling protection. She felt a gloved hand on her waist, almost pulling her closer to him, but not uncomfortably forcefully.

"She said back off," El Tigre literally growled, sending the men flying off in the opposite direction. The blue haired Mexican in his hold was still partially paralyzed, only shaking herself from shock from his comment: "Perverts, more of them recently."

She shoved him away and he stepped back, giving her a wide enough berth, but still giving no signs of leaving her alone. He rubbed his shoulder. "Not even as much as a thank you?" he teased, smirking grimly.

"Go away, Manny."

"You can't still be mad at me." It was a statement.

_Don't act as if you can't predict my every move! _Her thoughts screeched. Cyan eyes turned to him. "Why not?"

"It's been three days, Frida," he responded, now showing repentance, "You can't stay mad at me forever."

"Watch me." Frida turned on her heel, still shaky, and walked further down the alley.

"You could at least be grateful a bit," he raised his voice at her back, "I just saved you from a few rapists!"

"Which ones? The street rats or the tiger?"

She sauntered on again, breathing steadily and trying o remain in control of the situation. She had to end it here, otherwise she'd loose her temper completely.

Manny however, had another notion. Grabbing her wrists he pinned her against the wall, a firm hold warning her not to struggle. Familiar with such retracted claws, she simply looked at him through sky blue bangs. Conflict was evident in his eyes, conflict which he was dying to solve immediately.

"I always hated that aspect about you," he started vaguely, "Able to drive people to their limit and keep them there if you wanted to, almost always turning your back and forgetting everything else that's important."

"Like you know," she retorted, "You're half villain."

He remained silent, keeping his eyes on hers. Finally, she looked away. "Let me go."

"No."

"Manny,"

"I said, no."

The far away sirens were fair enough to gate on remaining patience.

"What's it with you and Aves?" he asked suddenly. She didn't look up.

"Childhood torture: I told you that already."

"It's more than that," she looked up at him, questioning. "I know you, Frida; it's more than that."

What else could she say?

_Of course not, Manny._

_Let me go already._

_I don't want to talk about it._

_I love you…?_

She shuddered: how romantic. She could never say that to him- not to him. Thankfully, she didn't have to.

Manny closed in on her, eyes closing as he locked her in kiss. Mind blank, she could hardly move.

_What else is there to do?_

"Are my pranks really shallow?" she asked softly when he retreated. He grinned.

"Where would you get an idea like that?" she smiled as the space between them shrunk again.

"You're the bestest friend in todos el mundo."

His lips brushed against hers. "Anything for my girlfriend."

Comment please! :D… they might be a bit ooc, I'm aware, but I want to hear it from you!


End file.
